Targeted television advertisements associated with online users&#39; preferred television programs or channels

ABSTRACT

In an automatic, computer-implemented method, a selected television advertisement is presented automatically in association with a television program or channel, which in turn is selected based at least in part on information from an online user profile that contains information indicating a user&#39;s preference for that television program or channel. The television advertisement is selected based at least in part on additional information from the online user profile that is unrelated to the selected television program or channel. The selected television advertisement is presented on or during the selected television program or channel via a set-top box, which has a set-top box identifier associated with the online user profile.

BACKGROUND

The field of the present invention relates to presenting televisionadvertisements that are targeted based on online user profiles. Inparticular, systems and methods are described for presenting targetedtelevision advertisements during television programs for which an onlineuser has expressed a preference or affinity.

A variety of systems and methods currently target advertisements basedon user/viewer/customer behavior. Many of those rely on collection ofpersonally identifiable information (PII) to correlate the personexhibiting the behavior with advertisements targeted at that person. Insome systems, advertisements can be targeted without collecting PII, butin such systems, typically, the advertisement is delivered over the samemedium as the medium in which the non-personally identifiableinformation is measured or collected. For example, many grocery storeshand out so-called “club cards,” which can but need not be linked toPII. A shopper presents the card at checkout to receive variousdiscounts, thereby allowing the store to link a list of purchased itemsto the card. As the system “learns” the purchasing habits of thatcardholder, it can begin issuing coupons targeted at purchases that thecardholder has made previously or that the system predicts thecardholder may wish to make based on past purchases. In another example,online advertisements can be targeted based on an Internet user's onlineactivities without using PII. The use of browser cookies enables an adserver to recognize an Internet site visitor (more accurately, thecomputer or other device used by the visitor) who has previouslyconducted searches, accessed content, or viewed ads at the same or adifferent site linked to the ad server. The ad server can target futureadvertising to the site visitor based on that previous activity, againwithout necessarily using PII. A user who has searched for airlinetickets to southern California on an online travel site, for instance,might later receive targeted online advertisements for Disneyland, whichthe ad server (the one that collected or received the user's searchinformation from the online travel site) delivers to the user'scomputer, perhaps while the user is visiting another online site.

Targeting of advertisements becomes significantly more problematic todeliver “cross-medium,” i.e., when an advertisement is presented via onemedium based on user behavior exhibited, or demographic informationlearned, in another medium. One example of cross-medium advertising ispresentation of television advertisements that are targeted based on anonline user profile. One difficulty, however, arises from the need toassociate an online access device (e.g., a computer connected to theInternet) and a corresponding television device (e.g., a set-top box).Use of PII can facilitate the proper association. A few methods havebeen developed to associate computer and TV units without using PII,including, for example, those disclosed in this inventor's U.S.application Ser. No. 11/736,544 (entitled “Targeted televisionadvertisements based on online behavior” filed Apr. 17, 2007 in the nameof Roy Shkedi) and Ser. No. 11/968,117 filed (entitled “Targeted onlineadvertisements based on viewing or interacting with televisionadvertisements” Dec. 31, 2007 in the names of Roy Shkedi and RonenShlomo), both of which applications being hereby incorporated byreference in their entirety. Other methods for establishing suchassociations may exist or may be developed in the future. However theassociation is made (with or without PII), information from an onlineuser profile collected or generated during computer access of theInternet in a household can be used to select a targeted televisionadvertisement, which can be presented via the set-top box in thehousehold that is associated with the computer.

A problem remains, however, because a household may include multipleusers, each of whom independently access online content andindependently watch television. A targeted advertisement selected basedon online user profile information for a first household member might bewasted if presented to a second household member, especially one forwhom the targeted advertisement might not be suitable or effective. Forexample, a television advertisement for investment advice targeted basedon the ad server having recognizing that Dad had checked his onlineinvestment account would be wasted if presented on television whileDaughter watches a pop music show, even though the ad server hasdetermined that Dad's computer is associated with the set-top boxconnected to the television watched by Daughter.

It is therefore desirable to provide systems and methods for increasingthe probability that a television advertisement targeted based on anonline user profile is presented while the corresponding user (i.e., the“target”) watches television.

SUMMARY

An automatic, computer-implemented method comprises automaticallyarranging for presenting, in association with a selected televisionprogram or channel, a selected television advertisement. The televisionprogram or channel is selected based at least in part on informationfrom an online user profile, with that information specificallyindicating a user's preference for, or affinity to, that televisionprogram or channel. The television advertisement is selected based atleast in part on additional information from the online user profilethat is unrelated to the selected television program or channel. Theselected television advertisement is presented via a set-top box on theselected television program or channel, with the set-top box beingidentified by a corresponding set-top box identifier that is associatedwith the online user profile.

Objects and advantages pertaining to presenting televisionadvertisements targeted based on online user profiles may becomeapparent upon referring to the exemplary embodiments illustrated in thedrawings and disclosed in the following written description or appendedclaims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates schematically exemplary interactions among an onlineuser, an online site, and a central ad server as an online user profileis collected or generated.

FIG. 2 illustrates schematically exemplary transmission of a targetedtelevision advertisement to a user's set-top box (STB).

FIG. 3 illustrates schematically an exemplary process for presenting atargeted television advertisement during a selected television programor on a selected television channel.

FIG. 4A illustrates schematically a targeted television advertisementtemporally interleaved with a selected television program. FIGS. 4B and4C illustrate schematically a targeted television advertisementpresented immediately before or immediately after a selected televisionprogram.

FIGS. 5A-5E illustrate schematically a targeted television advertisementspatially combined with a selected television program.

The embodiments shown in the figures are exemplary and should not beconstrued as limiting the scope of the present disclosure or appendedclaims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Some of the terms used in the present disclosure or appended claims aredefined as follows.

Television provider (TVP)—an entity that provides television service toa subscriber or user via any suitable transmission medium, including butnot limited to coaxial cable, fiber-optical cable, network cable, phoneline, satellite transmission, VHF or UHF transmission, otherover-the-air transmission, or wireless transmission, e.g., via mobilephone infrastructure.

Internet service provider (ISP; equivalently, an online accessprovider)—an entity that provides online access to a subscriber or uservia any suitable transmission medium, including but not limited tocoaxial cable, fiber-optical cable, network cable, phone line, satellitetransmission, wireless transmission (e.g., WiMax, WiFi, or other IEEE802 wireless protocols), or VHF or UHF transmission. The online accessenables the subscriber to access the Internet and its myriad onlinesites, or to access any future network successor to the Internet.

ISP/TVP—in some instances a single entity (or providers controlled by asingle entity) can provide to one or more subscribers or users bothtelevision service and online access. Such an entity is referred toherein as an ISP/TVP. Although an ISP and a TVP are representedschematically in the drawings by separate labeled boxes, the drawingsare intended to encompass implementations in which the ISP and the TVPare independent entities as well as other implementations in which acommon ISP/TVP provides both services.

Set-top box (STB)—a device that connects a television and a televisionsignal source. The STB receives an incoming television signal, extractscontent from the received signal, and transmits the extracted content tothe television to be presented to a viewer. The television signal sourcecan be one or more of a computer network cable (e.g., an Ethernet orother transmission-speed cable), a satellite dish, a coaxial cableconnected to a cable television system, a telephone line or digitalsubscriber line (DSL), a wireless network connection, an antenna (VHF,UHF, digital, or other), or another suitable signal source. The contentcan include, but is not limited to, video (which often can include anaudio portion), audio, Internet web pages, interactive games, or othercontent. An STB may or may not include a dedicated television tuner.Each STB typically is assigned an identifier of some sort by thecorresponding TVP, e.g., to enable the TVP to direct specific signals orprogramming to a specific STB, to identify the source of requests,commands, queries, or responses received from a particular STB, or forother purposes. In some instances such an STB identifier might be knownonly to the corresponding TVP and not available for outsidecommunication. If the STB is connected to the Internet as a signalsource (directly, through another device, or through the correspondingTVP; connected to the Internet only, or also connected in parallel toanother signal source such as a cable television transmissioninfrastructure), the STB identifier can include an STB IP address (i.e.,an Internet Protocol address) or a portion thereof. If the STB isconnected to both the Internet and another signal source, the STBidentifier can include an identifier specific to the other signal sourcein addition to the STB IP address. In some instances the STB identifieris static, while in other instances the STB identifier is dynamic andcan change from time to time. Sometimes, the STB identifier can involvea STB IP address and other times it can be an identifier used by aninfrastructure company (e.g., a cable company) to identify its STBs.

Despite its name, an STB need not be physically located on top of atelevision set literally. Under current technology, STBs often arelocated physically adjacent to the television set, such as in a mediacabinet or the like, but it is not even necessary that the STB belocated in proximity to the television. Nor is it necessary that the STBbe a box, literally. Rather, a STB might be implemented, for example, asa circuit board, integrated circuit, set of integrated circuits, orsoftware that is physically integrated with another “box,” such as thetelevision, a cable or other connection, a computer, or a buildingequipment or junction box, which also has other functions, or withoutbeing housed in any “box” at all.

Digital video recorder (DVR, alternatively personal video recorder orPVR)—a device that stores video content in a digitally encoded format ona digital storage medium, such as a hard drive, and enables playback ofthe stored content. A DVR can comprise a stand-alone unit connected to atelevision, a component of an STB, or a signal source, or the DVR cancomprise software that programs a computer to perform DVR storage andplayback functions.

Video-on-Demand (VOD)—a system that allows users to select and viewvideo content delivered from a signal source in response to a requestfrom the user. Typically, the requested video content can be viewed at atime of the user's own choosing and can be paused, rewound, orfast-forwarded as desired by the user. A VOD system can “stream” thecontent (enabling viewing of portions of a requested item of videocontent while other portions are still being delivered from the signalsource), or the VOD system can “download” the content and allow viewingonly after a complete item is delivered from the signal source. Some VODsystems allow users to select and watch video content over a network aspart of an interactive television system.

Interactive Television (interactive TV, iTV, idTV, or ITV)—anytelevision system that enables a viewer to interact with video contentdelivered to a television. Interactive television can include, but isnot limited to, access to Web sites through TV “crossover links,”electronic mail and online chat, online commerce, or enhanced graphics(relative to standard television offerings).

Internet Protocol Television (IPTV)—a system wherein television contentis delivered via a computer network using Internet Protocol (IP). Forresidential users, IPTV is often provided in conjunction with Video onDemand and can also be bundled with Internet services such as Internetaccess and Voice-over-IP (VoIP). Commercial bundling of TV, VoIP, andInternet access is sometimes referred to in the industry as a “tripleplay.” Additional telecommunications services (e.g., mobile voice ordata service) can be added, yielding a “quadruple play” and so forth.IPTV typically is supplied by a broadband service provider using aclosed network infrastructure. IPTV also can be provided over theInternet or other publicly accessible computer network, in which case itmight be referred to as Internet TV or TV-over-Internet. IPTV also canbe used to deliver video or other content over a corporate LAN or otherbusiness network.

Online user interface device—any user interface device used to access aremote network such as the Internet, including but not limited to a cellphone or mobile handset, a personal digital assistant (PDA), or anetworked computer (desktop, workstation, notebook, laptop, or other).

Online access device—any device used to connect an online user interfacedevice to a remote network such as the Internet, including but notlimited to a modem, a wired or wireless router, a wireless access point,a wired network adapter (e.g., Ethernet adapter), a wireless networkadapter (e.g., IEEE 802.11, ED-VO, EDGE, HSPA, CDMA, GSM, or other), oran optical fiber based network adapter (e.g., a network interface unitor optical network terminal). Different types of online access devicescan be and sometimes are combined into a single unit (e.g., a modem thatalso functions as a router for a LAN). An online user interface deviceand an online access device can be, and sometimes are, combined into asingle unit (e.g., a computer with a built-in Ethernet adapter, wirelessadapter, or modem). Each online access device typically is identified onthe Internet by an Internet Protocol address (i.e., an IP address;currently, under IPv4, an IP address comprises a sequence of fournumbers each ranging from 0 to 255, i.e., a 32-bit address; eventually,under IPv6, an IP address will comprise a 128-bit address). Everytransmission of data over the Internet includes a destination IP addressto enable the transmitted data to reach its intended destination. Insome instances an online device has a static IP address, while in other,more common instances an online access device has an IP address that isdynamic and changes from time to time. Although IP addresses arereferred to herein for enabling data transmitted via the Internet toreach its intended destination, that terminology is intended toencompass any functionally equivalent online access device identifieremployed to route such transmitted data to its intended destinationthrough the Internet or through any future successor network. Forexample, under IPv6, 128-bit addresses will be employed. Variousexamples of online access identifiers are described below, includingthose that comprise an IP address or a portion thereof.

User (equivalently, subscriber or viewer)—a person receiving onlineaccess or television service at a delivery end-point within a household,office, business, or other site or establishment served by an onlineaccess provider or television service provider. Multiple users can belocated at a single site or establishment. Television ads or programmingcan be presented on one television set or multiple sets of a given user;likewise, online access or ad delivery can involve one or more computersor other online interface devices of the user. In some instances, abusiness having multiple physical locations may be served by separateonline or television services, but in other instances, a business mayhave an internal LAN or WAN that extends service provided to multiplephysical locations. Also, some computers and televisions are portableand can access the service provided from remote locations. Accordingly,the term “user” is intended to refer to that person who receives theprovided services and does not require a fixed or single location insuch instances.

User profile—information concerning a specific user of online access ortelevision service. The profile information can be demographic, can bebased on observed online or television-related activity or behavior ofthe user, or can be based on declared information provided by orreported about the user. The profile information can be explicit (e.g.,declared or reported) or implicit (e.g., inferred on the basis of otherinformation in the profile). A user profile can be referred to as anonline user profile or a television user profile as appropriate if itincludes information collected or generated via only one of those media.The user profile can be collected or generated by one or more sources(i.e., profile providers, see below). The user profile can be storedlocally on a user's computer or set-top box (e.g., as browser cookies)or remotely on one or more servers, ad servers, or online sites, or atvarious combinations of those. A single entity can control such multiplelocations, or separate entities can control different ones of thelocations separately. Various portions of the profile can be linked toor associated with one another in any suitable way, e.g., by eachincluding or referring to a common user name, IP address or other onlineaccess identifier, or cookie or tag placed on the user's computer.Whatever the manner and location of storage (local or remote, singlelocation or distributed, single- or multiple-entity control), thetotality of the profile information associated with a given user can bereferred to collectively as “the user profile.”

Behavioral targeting—the delivery of specific advertisements to a user,the advertisements being selected on the basis of activity of the user,typically recent activity, including but not limited to: online ortelevision-based searches conducted by the user; content viewed orotherwise accessed by the user online or on television; online ortelevision advertisements viewed, clicked on, interacted with, orotherwise accessed by the user; shopping or purchases made by the useronline or through a television; and any other form of previous useronline or television activity.

Central Ad Server (CAS)—a computer server that manages delivery ofadvertisements (television or online) to visitors of online sites orviewers of television programs. A local ad server can be typically runby a single publisher to serve ads to visitors of websites or viewers oftelevision programs of that publisher, or by a single advertiser toserve ads into ad space acquired by the advertiser on various websitesor television programs. A third-party or remote ad server typically isremotely located and delivers advertisements of various advertisers tovisitors of websites or viewers of programs of multiple publishers. Theremote ad server acts as a central conduit for deliveringadvertisements, enabling advertisers and publishers to track thedistribution of their online or television advertisements and to controlthe rotation and distribution of their advertisements across theInternet or television system from one location. The advertisements canbe stored on the CAS for later delivery, can be transmitted to the CASand then delivered from the CAS upon receiving an ad request, or can bedelivered from another source in response to an ad request received androuted by the CAS. Examples of third-party ad servers includeDoubleClick's DART for Publishers central ad server (also known as DFP)and DoubleClick's DART for Advertisers central ad server (also known asDFA). In some cases, a CAS can be owned or used by a TVP, an ISP, an STBprovider or modem provider, an online content provider, a profileaggregator, a profile distributor, an ad broker, an ad network, an adexchange, an ad agency, an online advertiser, a media buying firm, a TVadvertiser, a TV ad space owner, or a TV content provider,representatives or proxies of any of those entities, or other entities.In some instances, the CAS will operate independently of an ISP or TVP.

Profile provider—an entity that has or collects profile information thatis used to target advertisements. In the context here, the profileprovider typically cooperates with a CAS, which receives all or part ofthe profile information from the profile provider for use in targetingtelevision or online advertisements. User profile information derivedfrom online or television activity can include, for example, observedonline behavior of a user accessing the Internet (e.g., viewed onlinecontent viewed or accessed, online searches performed, online purchasesmade, or times and dates of such behavior), observed viewing orinteraction behavior of a television viewer (e.g., television programsor ads viewed, responses to interactive programs or advertisements, ortimes and dates of such behavior), or demographic information collectedfrom an Internet user or television viewer.

Examples of profile providers can include, but are not limited to, anyentity that owns or uses: (1) a visited Internet site server; (2) aserver delivering content, images, audio, video, text, or anycombination directed to an online user interface device (such as acomputer or other online interface device) via an online access device(such as a modem or router), either directly or indirectly (e.g., via aredirect); (3) a server delivering content, images, audio, video, text,or any combination directed to a television via a set-top box; (4) an adserver delivering an ad to an online user interface device via an onlineaccess device; (5) an ad server delivering a television ad to atelevision via a set-top box; (6) a server recording an activityconducted from an online user interface device such as a click on an ador a link to an ad, a viewing of an ad, a click on a link to particularcontent, a search, a request for product information, receipt ofparticular content, a product purchase, a telephone call made, or anyother selected and definable user activity; (7) a server recording anactivity conducted through a user's television such as a click on an ador a link to an ad, a viewing of an ad, a click on a link to particularcontent, a request for product information, receipt of particularcontent, a product purchase, or any other selected and definable useractivity; or (8) a server facilitating instant messages or any otherkind of communication on behalf of the user.

Another example of a profile provider is: (9) a company sponsoring andhaving access to a program located on the user's computer or otheronline user interface device or on the user's set-top box that canobserve the user's online or television activity (with the user'spermission), such as a browser toolbar or desktop search software. Aprofile provider, broadly, can be: (10) any entity (including an ISP,TVP, or ISP/TVP) able to collect behavioral profiles (observed onlineactivity or observed viewing or viewing-related activity) or demographicprofiles (provided by the user), typically including a device identifier(e.g., a set-top box identifier or an online access identifier) usedwhen the profile was observed or collected and the date and time theprofile was observed or collected, regardless of whether or not theentity collected a given profile directly through contact with theuser's computer or television or indirectly from another entity such asthose listed in this or the previous paragraph. In some cases, a user'sonline or viewing activity will result in direct contact between thetelevision (via a set-top box) or the online user interface device (viaan online access device) and the profile provider, e.g., if the profileprovider is an online commerce site, the user makes a purchase at thesite, and the online commerce site generates a profile for that user. Inother instances there may be no direct contact between the profileprovider and the user, e.g., if the user makes a purchase at an onlinecommerce site that in turn reports information pertaining to the user tothe profile provider. In some situations, also, a profile provider mightalso own or otherwise control a CAS, in which case user profiles can beimmediately available to the CAS without need for transmission betweenseparate entities.

Profiles or partial profiles provided by a profile provider to a CAS cancontain any quantity of profile information, such as, in one example,just an online access IP address or set-top box IP address or other STBidentifier used by a person at the time his profile was collected andthe identity of the profile provider. The profile can include, e.g., aprofile identifier or profile name, a username, or a login ID; theprofile can be referenced by or included in a cookie or tag placed on auser's STB or online user interface device. The IP address can beprovided by the profile provider itself or might be obtained by the CASwhen a user engages in any online or television activity or provides anitem of demographic information and is redirected by a profile providerto the CAS. Multiple set-top box identifiers or online accessidentifiers (such as IP addresses) can be associated with a single userprofile if those identifiers change over time. In another example, aprofile can be more extensive and can include demographic or behavioralinformation, such as an extensive browsing history, shopping or purchasehistories, content or programs viewed, and other information concerningthe user's characteristics or the user's activities. In some instances aprofile includes PII; in other instances it does not. Although theprofile provider is an entity, many or most of the actions attributed tothe profile provider are actually performed by equipment under theadministrative control of the profile provider, such as computers,servers, software running on those computers or servers, networkconnection hardware or software, or other equipment. Such actions maystill be characterized as being performed “by the profile provider,”whether performed automatically, semi-automatically, or manually.

Personally Identifiable Information (PII)—information that can be usedto identify a specific person, including but not limited to: name,Social Security number (SSN), date of birth, street address, emailaddress, static IP address (if any), phone number (home, work,wireless), financial account numbers (bank accounts, credit accounts, orany other financial data), driver's license number, vehicle registrationnumber, vehicle license number, facial photographs, fingerprints,handwriting or signature, or any other information that can assist inidentifying a specific person.

Non-Personally Identifiable Information (non-PII)—information about aperson that typically cannot be used to specifically identify thatperson, including but not limited to: city, state, or country ofresidence, age, gender, race, ethnicity, school or workplace (ifsufficiently large), salary or income, hobbies, dynamically assigned IPaddresses, online sites visited, online searches conducted, or otherinformation that is useful to know about a person but does not by itselfallow one knowing the information to identify the particular person.

Cookie—a text file placed on a user's computer by a server that alsoserves content to the user's computer using browser software. The cookietypically can be read or altered only by a server operating under thesame Internet domain as the server that originally placed the cookie.The cookie file can be used to identify a computer that has already beenin contact with the same domain and can also be used to store PII ornon-PII pertaining to a user of that computer. In a first example, acookie can store non-PII such as previous searches conducted at thesite, or pages viewed or visited at the site, by the computer user. In asecond example, a cookie can be used to store a username used by theuser to access a site, customized preferences of the user, or variouspieces of PII. A cookie file can also be created, altered, or deleted bysoftware located on the user's computer.

Television advertisement (TV ad)—a full screen video ad, a partialscreen video ad, a banner ad, a text ad, an audio ad, or any other formof advertisement suitable for delivery to and visual or audiblepresentation by a television set.

As illustrated schematically in FIG. 1, an online user accesses theInternet 10 via the user's Internet service provider (ISP) 22 usingcomputer 34 and modem 32. As the user engages in various onlineactivity, an online user profile is collected or generated by one ormore profile providers (e.g., the owner or controller of central adserver (CAS) 40 or online site 50). That online user profile can includedemographic information concerning the user, can include informationconcerning the user's online behavior, or can include informationdeclared online by or about the user. These categories of profileinformation can overlap.

Examples of demographic information may include but are not limited to:age, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, educational level, income, debtlevel, credit report entries, job or profession, employment status,employer, marital status, parental status, home owner or renter, orgeographic location. Examples of behavioral information may include butare not limited to: online content viewed or accessed, online searchesperformed, online purchases made, or times and dates of such behaviors.Examples of declared information may include but are not limited to auser's declared interest in a hobby, social or leisure activity,vocation or avocation, or particular subject area. The profile cancontain personally identifiable information, or not.

Information in the online user profile can be obtained or generated bysoliciting information from the user, by tracking or recording onlineactivity of the user, or by inference based on solicited, tracked, orrecorded information.

Online user profile information can be stored locally on a user'scomputer (e.g., as cookies) or remotely (e.g., on one or more servers,ad servers, or online sites). In some instances the entire online userprofile can be stored at a single location, and in other instancesonline user profile information can be distributed over multiplelocations. A single entity can control such multiple locations, orseparate entities can control different ones of the locationsseparately.

The information from the online user profile can be used to selecttargeted television advertisements for presentation to the online userwhile that user watches television.

An association between the online user profile and a correspondingset-top box (by which the user receives any suitable type of televisionservice, e.g., cable, IPTV, VOD) is required to enable delivery ortransmission of the targeted television advertisement to a television atthe user's location (as in FIG. 2). Such an association can beestablished or provided in any suitable way, including those disclosedin the above-referenced, incorporated applications Ser. Nos. 11/736,544and 11/968,117.

In one example, the online user profile and the set-top box identifierare associated by each being associated with the same correspondingonline access identifier (e.g., an IP address, or a portion thereof, ofa modem, network adapter, router, or other online access device or userinterface device). In one implementation, the online access identifierand the set-top box identifier can be associated by the online accessidentifier being referenced or included in the online user profile. Inanother implementation, the online access identifier and the firstset-top box identifier can be associated in a database. The online userprofile and the set-top box identifier can be associated with or withoutemploying personally identifiable information concerning the user, asneeded, desired, or required.

In another example, the online user profile originates at least partlyfrom an online user interface device (e.g., a computer), and the onlineuser profile and the set-top box identifier are associated by theset-top box and the online user interface device being connected to acommon local area network (LAN). In one such arrangement an onlineaccess identifier corresponding to the set-top box and an online accessidentifier corresponding to the user interface device are the same(e.g., the 32-bit IP address of a modem that connects the LAN to theInternet in accordance with IPv4; as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2). In anothersuch arrangement, the online access identifier corresponding to theset-top box and the online access identifier corresponding to the userinterface device share a common portion of their respective onlineaccess identifiers (e.g., they share the first 64 bits of theirrespective 128-bit IP addresses used in accordance with IPv6). Othersuch common-LAN arrangements can be employed. Although a connectionbetween modem 32 and STB 36 is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, such a connectionneed not be present in every implementation, including those describedin the previous paragraph.

The targeted television advertisement can be delivered or transmitted tothe user's set-top box (STB) 36 from any suitable entity (e.g., from CAS40 via TVP 24 as FIG. 2 illustrates, from CAS 40 via ISP 22, from onlinesite 50, or from another server, ad server, or online site). The entityselecting the targeted television advertisement can present or arrangefor the presentation of the advertisement, or cause another entity topresent or arrange for the presentation of the advertisement. Thoseactions can include transmitting the selected television advertisement,transmitting a title or other identifier of the selected televisionadvertisement, redirecting the online user to an ad server, ortransmitting instructions for or other information used for identifying,locating, or presenting the selected television advertisement.

The targeted television advertisement can be delivered or transmitted toSTB 32 at the time it is to be presented, or it can be delivered ortransmitted in advance of display and stored in STB 32 or in a digitalvideo recorder (DVR; not shown). The targeted television advertisementis presented via STB 32 on television 38 or other suitable televisiondisplay device.

It is desirable to increase the likelihood that the targeted televisionadvertisement is presented at a time when the user, specifically thesame person whose online user profile caused the targeted televisionadvertisement to be selected, is watching television. A televisionadvertisement targeted based on an online user profile of a first useris more likely to be wasted or ineffective if presented while adifferent, second user is watching television.

The likelihood of presenting the targeted television advertisement whilethe intended target (i.e., user) is watching television can be increasedby presenting the targeted television advertisement in association witha particular television program or channel for which that user hasindicated a specific preference or affinity. The user is more likely tosee a television advertisement targeted at that user (based on thatuser's online profile) if presented in association with that user'sfavored or preferred television program or channel.

A user's online profile can include information that indicates theuser's preference for a particular television program or channel. Auser's preference for a particular television program or channel can beindicated explicitly or implicitly. Examples of explicit indication caninclude, but are not limited to: (a) the user answering a surveyquestion (e.g., “What are your favorite television programs?”) or (b)the user listing one or more favorite television programs or channels aspart of a social networking site profile.

Examples of implicit indication can include, but are not limited to: (a)the user repeatedly visiting the online site of a television program orchannel, (b) the user downloading or watching one or more episodes ofthe television program online (as opposed to via the user's televisionservice), (c) the user participating in an online forum or discussiongroup concerning the television program or channel, (d) the userpurchasing (online) merchandise associated with the television programor channel (e.g., clothing, books, magazines, screensavers, ringtones,or music soundtrack), (e) the user viewing online content or making anonline purchase in response to an earlier television advertisement shownduring the television program or on the television channel, in a mannerthat would identify the TV program or channel as having been watched bythat user, e.g., (i) because the user's activity indicated use of acoupon, discount, or code that was part of the advertisement during theprogram or on the channel in question, or (ii) because the ad wasdelivered only during a single program, a small number of programs, oron a single channel, or (f) the user repeatedly consulting an onlineprogram guide and viewing entries concerning a particular program orchannel.

An example of a combination of explicit and implicit indication isconsidering TV programs as having been indicated when they share thesame themes as one or (better) a variety of TV programs explicitlyidentified online as favorites. For example, if a user explicitlyindicates three or more science fiction programs as favorites, a systemmight consider all science fiction programs as having been implicitlyindicated.

In whatever way the online user profile comes to include informationindicating the user's preference for the particular television programor channel, that information can be used to select that particulartelevision program or channel as a suitable one for presenting atargeted television advertisement. The exemplary flow diagram of FIG. 3illustrates that process schematically; the order of steps isillustrative and can vary as needed or desired.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the targeted television advertisement can bepresented automatically in association with presentation (via the user'sset-top box) of the selected television program or channel. Thetelevision programs viewed via the user's set-top box (during broadcast,unicast, or recorded playback; via cable, IPTV, VOD, Internet-basedsource, or other suitable source) can be monitored, and a program thathas been indicated as preferred or as a favorite can be recognized. Suchmonitoring can be done locally by the set-top box, remotely by a serverto which the set-top box reports its activity, remotely by a serverdelivering the television program to the set-top box, or by othersuitable arrangements. Once a program is thus recognized, the targetedtelevision advertisement, either selected in advance or in real-time,can be inserted into the recognized, selected television program by theserver delivering the program, by the set-top box, or by another serverstructured and connected for that purpose.

Most often, the targeted television advertisement is selected at leastin part based on information from the online user profile unrelated tothe specifically preferred television program or channel. For example, afirst user might search for car insurance online and might also(separately) indicate that “Law & Order” is a favorite television show.Car insurance and “Law & Order” are not necessarily related, yet anexemplary method might allow presentation of a television advertisementfor car insurance during an episode of “Law & Order” shown via the firstuser's set-top box. Under the same exemplary method, a second user whoalso indicated that “Law & Order” is a favorite television show, but whobrowsed for a particular travel destination at an online travel site,might receive a television advertisement touting flights to or hotels atthe destination, also presented during an episode of “Law & Order” shownvia the second user's set-top box.

In a second example, a first user searches online for automobiles andindicates (separately, and not necessarily during the same onlinesession) that “Lost” is a favorite television show. A second user at thesame household (or other common physical location), browses a medicalinformation site (probably at a time different from when the first userperformed searches) and indicates (separately, and not necessarilyduring the same online session as the second user browsed the medicalinformation site) that “The Discovery Channel” is a favorite televisionchannel.

The two users can have distinct corresponding online user profilesthrough use of different computers or through use of different useraccounts or user IDs on the same computer. If two users in a singlehousehold (or other single physical location) share a common onlineaccess IP address or other similar online access identifier (e.g., bysharing a computer, modem, or router), their profiles can neverthelessbe distinct and can be distinguished by different profile identifiers(e.g., different browser cookies, one of which is associated with eachprofile). If the two users have differing online access identifiers(e.g., differing IP addresses or differing portions thereof in an IPv6implementation), their respective profiles can be distinguished bydiffering profile identifiers or by the differing online accessidentifiers.

On the basis of those distinct profiles (that are each associated withthe set-top box identifier), an exemplary method might causepresentation of a television advertisement for automobiles during replayof an episode of “Lost” via the set-top box, and a televisionadvertisement for a health insurance plan during replay of “DiscoveryChannel” shows via the same set-top box (or a different set-top box butalso located at the users' common physical location and also associatedwith the online user profiles).

In a third example, a first online user profile includes demographicinformation indicating that a first user is a 46-year-old femaleengineer with a master's degree, is married with two children, and has ahousehold income of $130,000/year. The same online user profile alsocontains behavioral information showing that she repeatedly checks anonline program guide and views entries for “MythBusters” in that guide.

According to an embodiment using the information in this example, an adserver or computerized method can select a television advertisementbased on the demographic information in the first online user profile.For example, the ad server may be programmed to show ads for calciumsupplements to highly educated women over 40 with kids and highdisposable income because that product does particularly well among thatdemographic subgroup. If so, the calcium supplement ad can be presentedin association with an episode of “MythBusters” via the first user'sset-top box. If a second online user profile includes exactly the samedemographic information for a second online user, but that second userhas repeatedly visited the online site for “The Daily Show,” theembodiment can allow the ad server or computerized method to select thevery same targeted television ad, for the same reasons, but present thatad via the second user's set-top box during an episode of “The DailyShow” instead.

The examples given are intended to represent examples of types ofprogram or advertisement selections, in various classes of attributes orcharacteristics, rather than specific cut-offs. For example, the agesare selected arbitrarily and could be changed to different specific agesor age ranges, and the example interests and hobbies are arbitrary andnot central to the point being made. The same is true for examples givenelsewhere herein.

As illustrated in the foregoing examples, the television advertisementselected for targeted presentation based on information in the onlineuser profile may or may not be directly related to the that profileinformation. In different cases, the relationship between the profileand the ad may be direct (e.g., search online for a particular concertticket, get targeted television ads for that concert), indirect (e.g.,browse online at the Disney site, get targeted television ads forAnaheim hotels), generally behavioral (e.g., browse online at a huntingsite, get targeted television ads for beer), or strictly demographic(e.g., be a 50 year-old woman, get targeted television ads foranti-wrinkle cream).

The disclosed systems and methods also provide opportunities fordelivering targeted television ads that might be considered“counterintuitive.” For example, a 70 year-old retired concert pianistwho regularly participates in an online forum concerning professionalwrestling can be presented with ads for classical music performances orrecordings during episodes of “WWE Raw” shown via her set-top box—anadvertising opportunity that would not be typically utilized or evenconsidered using more traditional advertising models.

Presentation of targeted television advertisements in association with auser-specified preferred television channel (as opposed to show) islikely more effective for specialized or niche television channels(e.g., Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, Comedy Central, HistoryChannel) rather than general-purpose television networks (e.g., ABC,CBS, NBC, Fox), and it may be desirable to limit implementation of thedisclosed methods to such niche channels. However, methods in accordancewith the embodiments discussed here can apply to user selection ofpreferred channels of any type or having any degree of specificity (fromniche channels to major networks).

Presentation of a targeted television advertisement in association witha specifically preferred television program or channel can be achievedin a variety of ways. In one example, targeted television advertisement104 can be shown temporally interleaved with selected television program102 (FIG. 4A) or immediately before or immediately after selectedtelevision program 102 (FIGS. 4B and 4C), or it can be shown spatiallycombined with selected television program 102 on television screen 99(e.g., overlaid as in FIGS. 5A and 5B or juxtaposed as in FIGS. 5C-5E).The selected television program 102 may or may not also include othertemporally interleaved or spatially combined advertisements (not shown).The selected television advertisement can presented during a latterportion of a television program immediately preceding the selectedprogram or during an initial portion of a television program immediatelyfollowing the selected program. In any of those examples, the targetedtelevision advertisement can be presented immediately before, during, orimmediately after broadcast presentation of the selected televisionprogram, or immediately before, during, or immediately after delayedpresentation of the selected television program (e.g., by recording andlater viewing with a DVR or via a video-on-demand system).

If the ad server elects to present a targeted television advertisementin association with a user-preferred television channel (as opposed to apreferred show), then the targeted advertisement can be shown, inaccordance with different embodiments, (a) during any program shown onthe preferred channel or (b) during only certain programs on thatchannel, in any of the ways described above.

The examples discussed above, although somewhat numerous, describe onlya few examples of the disclosed systems and methods, and it isrecognized that various of the specifically discussed embodiments fallwith broad categories of embodiments involving a targeted televisionadvertisement being (a) selected based on behavioral, demographic, ordeclared information in an online user profile, and (b) presented inassociation with a television program or a television channel for whichan online user has specifically indicated a preference (explicitly orimplicitly). Myriad other examples, cases, and variations exist withinthe scope of such broader disclosed classes of embodiments, despite allsuch examples not having being specifically set forth herein.

In any of the disclosed implementations, each of the necessary steps canbe performed by a single entity (such as a profile provider) or withcollaboration of multiple different entities (or equivalently, bycomputer systems controlled by a single entity or multiple computersystems each controlled by a different entity). For example, online userprofile information indicating a preferred television program can becollected by an online site controlled by one entity, while the onlineuser profile information used to select the targeted advertisement canbe collected by an ad server controlled by another entity.

Other specific examples include, but are not limited to: (a) a singleentity can provide at least a portion of an online user profile, selecta targeted television ad based on the online user profile, select atelevision program based on the online user profile, and arrangepresentation of the selected ad in association with the selectedprogram; (b) a first entity can select a targeted television ad based ononline user profile information provided by a second entity, select atelevision program based on online user profile information provided bya third entity, and arrange presentation of the selected ad inassociation with the selected program; (c) a first entity can select atargeted television ad based on an online user profile, a second entitycan select a television program based on the online user profile, andthe second entity can arrange presentation of the selected ad inassociation with the selected program; or (d) a first entity can selecta targeted television ad based on an online user profile, a secondentity can select a television program based on the online user profile,the second entity can arrange transmission of the selected ad and theselected program to a television provider, and the television providercan arrange presentation of the selected ad in association with theselected program. Myriad other scenarios can be implemented.

In any of the examples including delivery of targeted televisionadvertisements, those television ads can be provided by a wide varietyof sources or entities. Above-referenced, incorporated applications Ser.Nos. 11/736,544 and 11/968,117 disclose examples of various sources fortargeted television advertisements.

In any of the disclosed implementations, revenue can be generated anddistributed among the involved entities in a wide variety of ways.Above-referenced, incorporated applications Ser. Nos. 11/736,544 and11/968,117 disclose various examples, including some including thefeature of compensating a profile provider for enabling targeting oftelevision advertisements.

The systems and methods disclosed herein can be implemented as generalor special purpose computers or other programmable hardware devicesprogrammed through software, or as hardware or equipment “programmed”through hard wiring, or a combination of the two. Computer programs orother software, if used, can be implemented in temporary or permanentstorage or in replaceable media, such as by including programming inmicrocode, object-oriented code, web-based or distributed softwaremodules that operate together, RAM, ROM, CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, hard drives,thumb drives, flash memory, optical media, magnetic media, semiconductormedia, or any future storage alternatives.

It is intended that equivalents of the disclosed exemplary embodimentsand methods shall fall within the scope of the present disclosure orappended claims. It is intended that the disclosed exemplary embodimentsand methods, and equivalents thereof, may be modified while remainingwithin the scope of the present disclosure or appended claims.

For purposes of the present disclosure and appended claims, theconjunction “or” is to be construed inclusively (e.g., “a dog or a cat”would be interpreted as “a dog, or a cat, or both”; e.g., “a dog, a cat,or a mouse” would be interpreted as “a dog, or a cat, or a mouse, or anytwo, or all three”), unless: (i) it is explicitly stated otherwise,e.g., by use of “either . . . or”, “only one of . . . ”, or similarlanguage; or (ii) two or more of the listed alternatives are mutuallyexclusive within the particular context, in which case “or” wouldencompass only those combinations involving non-mutually-exclusivealternatives. For purposes of the present disclosure or appended claims,the words “comprising,” “including,” “having,” and variants thereofshall be construed as open-ended terminology, with the same meaning asif the phrase “at least” were appended after each instance thereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. An automatic, computerized method of presentingdifferent profile-targeted advertisements aimed at a plurality of usersof a common set-top box comprising: (a) automatically with a computeradvertisement server system sending a first transmission to causepresentation of a first television advertisement in association withpresentation of a first television program or channel via a firstset-top box identified by a first set-top box identifier, based on: (i)an identified relationship between the first television program orchannel and a first online user profile; and (ii) a selection of thefirst television advertisement; and (b) automatically with the computeradvertisement server system sending a second transmission to causepresentation of a second television advertisement in association withpresentation of a second television program or channel via the firstset-top box based on: (i) an identified relationship between the secondtelevision program or channel and a second online user profile; and (ii)a selection of the second television advertisement; wherein: (c) thefirst online user profile contains profile information collected during,or generated as a result of, browsing activity of online content by afirst user through a first online user interface device, and the secondonline user profile contains profile information collected during, orgenerated as a result of, browsing activity of online content by asecond user through a second online user interface device; (d) the firstset-top box identifier is associated with both the first online userprofile and the second online user profile; (e) the relationship betweenthe first television program or channel and the first online userprofile is identified automatically based at least in part on firsttelevision preference information, from the first online user profile,and the relationship between the second television program or channeland the second online user profile is identified automatically based atleast in part on second television preference information, from thesecond online user profile; (f) the first television preferenceinformation is generated or modified by information collected duringbrowsing activity of online content by the first user with the firstonline user interface device, and the second television preferenceinformation is generated or modified by information collected duringbrowsing activity of online content by the second user with the secondonline user interface device; (g) the first television preferenceinformation indicates a preference for the first television program orchannel on the part of the first user, and the second televisionpreference information indicates a preference for the second televisionprogram or channel on the part of the second user; (h) the firsttelevision advertisement is selected based at least in part on firstadditional information, from the first online user profile, and thesecond television advertisement is selected based at least in part onsecond additional information, from the second online user profile; (i)the first additional information is different from the first televisionpreference information, and the second additional information isdifferent from the second television preference information; (j) thefirst set-top device, the first online user interface device, and thesecond online user interface device are separate devices; and (k) whichof the first and second television advertisements is selected forpresentation in association with which of the first and secondtelevision programs or channels depends on differences between the firstonline user profile and the second online user profile.
 2. The method ofclaim 1 wherein the first television program or channel is a televisionprogram and the first online user profile includes an explicitindication of a preference for the television program.
 3. The method ofclaim 1 wherein the first television program or channel is a televisionprogram and the first online user profile includes an implicitindication of a preference for the television program.
 4. The method ofclaim 1 wherein the computer advertisement server system receives fromanother computer an identification of the relationship between the firsttelevision program or channel and a first online user profile.
 5. Themethod of claim 1 further comprising, with the computer advertisementserver system, identifying the relationship between the first televisionprogram or channel and the first online user profile.
 6. The method ofclaim 1 wherein the computer advertisement server system receives fromanother computer an identification of the selected first televisionadvertisement.
 7. The method of claim 1 further comprising, with thecomputer advertisement server system, selecting the first televisionadvertisement.
 8. The method of claim 7 further comprising, with thecomputer advertisement server system, identifying the relationshipbetween the first television program or channel and the first onlineuser profile.
 9. The method of claim 1 wherein the first set-top boxidentifier and the first online user profile are associated by eachbeing associated with a common online access identifier.
 10. The methodof claim 9 wherein the common online access identifier and the firstonline user profile are associated by the common online accessidentifier being referenced or included in the first online userprofile.
 11. The method of claim 9 wherein the common online accessidentifier and the first set-top box identifier are associated in adatabase.
 12. The method of claim 9 wherein the common online accessidentifier and the first set-top box identifier are associated by (i) anonline access device that corresponds to the common online accessidentifier, and (ii) the first set-top box being connected to a commonlocal area network.
 13. The method of claim 1 wherein the first onlineuser profile and the first set-top box identifier are associated withoutemploying personally identifiable information concerning the user. 14.The method of claim 1 wherein the first television program or channel isa television program and the first selected television advertisement ispresented in association with delayed presentation of the televisionprogram.
 15. The method of claim 1 wherein the first television programor channel is a television program and the first selected televisionadvertisement is presented immediately before or immediately afterpresentation of the television program.
 16. The method of claim 1wherein the first television preference information has been collectedfrom browsing activity of online content of the first user through thefirst online user interface device, said browsing activity occurring ata time when the first online user interface device is not connected to alocal network that includes the first set-top box.
 17. A systemcomprising at least one computer advertisement server structured andprogrammed to present different profile-targeted advertisements aimed ata plurality of users of a common set-top box by: (a) automaticallysending a first transmission to cause presentation of a first televisionadvertisement in association with presentation of a first televisionprogram or channel via a first set-top box identified by a first set-topbox identifier based on: (i) an identified relationship between thefirst television program or channel and a first online user profile; and(ii) a selection of the first television advertisement; and (b)automatically sending a second transmission to cause presentation of asecond television advertisement in association with presentation of asecond television program or channel via the first set-top box based on:(i) an identified relationship between the second television program orchannel and a second online user profile; and (ii) a selection of thesecond television advertisement; wherein: (c) the first online userprofile contains profile information collected during, or generated as aresult of, browsing activity of online content by a first user through afirst online user interface device, and the second online user profilecontains profile information collected during, or generated as a resultof, browsing activity of online content by a second user through asecond online user interface device; (d) the first set-top boxidentifier is associated with both the first online user profile and thesecond user profile; (e) the relationship between the first televisionprogram or channel and the first online user profile is identifiedautomatically based at least in part on first television preferenceinformation, from the first online user profile, and the relationshipbetween the second television program or channel and the second onlineuser profile is identified automatically based at least in part onsecond television preference information, from the second online userprofile; (f) the first television preference information is generated ormodified by information collected during browsing activity of onlinecontent by the first user with the first online user interface device,and the second television preference information is generated ormodified by information collected during browsing activity of onlinecontent by the second user with the second online user interface device;(g) the first television preference information indicates a preferencefor the first television program or channel on the part of the firstuser, and the second television preference information indicates apreference for the second television program or channel on the part ofthe second user; (h) the first television advertisement is selectedbased at least in part on first additional information, from the firstonline user profile, and the second television advertisement is selectedbased at least in part on second additional information, from the secondonline user profile; (i) the first additional information is differentfrom the first television preference information, and the secondadditional information is different from the second televisionpreference information; (j) the first set-top device, the first onlineuser interface device, and the second online user interface device areseparate devices; and (k) which of the first and second televisionadvertisements is selected for presentation in association with which ofthe first and second television programs or channels depends ondifferences between the first online user profile and the second onlineuser profile.
 18. The system of claim 17 wherein the first televisionprogram or channel is a television program and the first online userprofile includes an explicit indication of a preference for thetelevision program.
 19. The system of claim 17 wherein the firsttelevision program or channel is a television program and the firstonline user profile includes an implicit indication of a preference forthe television program.
 20. The system of claim 17 wherein said at leastone computer advertisement server receives from another computer anidentification of the relationship between the first television programor channel and a first online user profile.
 21. The system of claim 17wherein said at least one computer advertisement server is furtherstructured and programmed to identify the relationship between the firsttelevision program or channel and the first online user profile.
 22. Thesystem of claim 17 wherein the first set-top box identifier and thefirst online user profile are associated by each being associated with acommon online access identifier.
 23. The system of claim 22 wherein thecommon online access identifier and the first online user profile areassociated by the common online access identifier being referenced orincluded in the first online user profile.
 24. The system of claim 22wherein the common online access identifier and the first set-top boxidentifier are associated in a database.
 25. The system of claim 22wherein the common online access identifier and the first set-top boxidentifier are associated by (i) an online access device thatcorresponds to the common online access identifier, and (ii) the firstset-top box being connected to a common local area network.
 26. Thesystem of claim 17 wherein the first online user profile and the firstset-top box identifier are associated without employing personallyidentifiable information concerning the user.
 27. The system of claim 17wherein the first television preference information has been collectedfrom browsing activity of online content of the first user through thefirst online user interface device, said browsing activity occurring ata time, when the first online user interface device is not connected toa local network that includes the first set-top box.
 28. An articlecomprising a tangible medium that is not a transitory propagating signalencoding computer-readable instructions that, when applied to at leastone computer advertising server, instruct the at least one computeradvertising server to present different profile-targeted advertisementsaimed at a plurality of users of a common set-top box by: (a)automatically sending a first transmission to cause presentation of afirst television advertisement in association with presentation of afirst television program or channel via a first set-top box identifiedby a first set-box identifier, based on: (i) an identified relationshipbetween the first television program or channel and a first online userprofile; and (ii) a selection of the first television advertisement; and(b) automatically sending a second transmission to cause presentation ofa second television advertisement in association with presentation of asecond television program or channel via the first set-top box based on:(i) an identified relationship between the second television program orchannel and a second online user profile; and (ii) a selection of thesecond television advertisement; wherein: (c) the first online userprofile contains profile information collected during, or generated as aresult of, browsing activity of online content by a respective firstuser through a first online user interface device, and the second onlineuser profile contains profile information collected during, or generatedas a result of, browsing activity of online content by a second userthrough a second online user interface device; (d) the first set-top boxidentifier is associated with both the first online user profile and thesecond online user profile; (e) the relationship between the firsttelevision program or channel and the first online user profile isidentified automatically based at least in part on first televisionpreference information, from the first online user profile, and therelationship between the second television program or channel and thesecond online user profile is identified automatically based at least inpart on second television preference information, from the second onlineuser profile; (f) the first television preference information isgenerated or modified by information collected during browsing activityof online content by the first user with the first online user interfacedevice, and the second television preference information is generated ormodified by information collected during browsing activity of onlinecontent by the second user with the second online user interface device;(g) the first television preference information indicates a preferencefor the first television program or channel on part of the first user,and the second television preference information indicates a preferencefor the second television program or channel on the part of the seconduser; (h) the first television advertisement is selected based at leastin part on first additional information, from the first online userprofile, and the second television advertisement is selected based atleast in part on second additional information, from the second onlineuser profile; (i) the first additional information is different from thefirst television preference information, and the second additionalinformation is different from the second television preferenceinformation; (j) the first set-top device, the first online userinterface device, and the second online user interface device areseparate devices; and (k) which of the first and second televisionadvertisements is selected for presentation in association with which ofthe first and second television programs or channels depends ondifferences between the first online user profile and the second onlineuser profile.
 29. The article of claim 28 wherein the first televisionprogram or channel is a television program and the first online userprofile includes an explicit indication of a preference for thetelevision program.
 30. The article of claim 28 wherein the firsttelevision program or channel is a television program and the firstonline user profile includes an implicit indication of a preference forthe television program.
 31. The article of claim 28 wherein said atleast one computer advertisement server receives from another computeran identification of the relationship between the first televisionprogram or channel and a first online user profile.
 32. The article ofclaim 28 wherein the computer-readable instructions further instructsaid at least one computer advertisement server to identify therelationship between the first television program or channel and thefirst online user profile.
 33. The article of claim 28 wherein the firstset-top box identifier and the first online user profile are associatedby each being associated with a common online access identifier.
 34. Thearticle of claim 33 wherein the common online access identifier and thefirst online user profile are associated by the common online accessidentifier being referenced or included in the first online userprofile.
 35. The article of claim 33 wherein the common online accessidentifier and the first set-top box identifier are associated in adatabase.
 36. The article of claim 33 wherein the common online accessidentifier and the first set-top box identifier are associated by (i) anonline access device that corresponds to the common online accessidentifier, and (ii) the first set-top box being connected to a commonlocal area network.
 37. The article of claim 28 wherein the first onlineuser profile and the first set-top box identifier are associated withoutemploying personally identifiable information concerning the user. 38.The article of claim 28 wherein the first television preferenceinformation has been collected from browsing activity of online contentof the first user through the first online user interface device, saidbrowsing activity occurring at a time, when the first online userinterface device is not connected to a local network that includes thefirst set-top box.